Hollister fined nearly $200K for releasing tomato processing wastewater into river

HOLLISTER, Calif. (KION) The city of Hollister has agreed to pay $181,110 to the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board for releasing about 38,500 gallons of tomato processing wastewater into the San Benito River without authorization, according to the California Water Board.

Half of the funds will go toward a project to redirect storm water and wastewater to the treatment plant for discharge to land.

The California Water Board said the discharges happened in 2016 when a temporary plug failed because of the high-temperature tomato processing waste water. The hope for the project is that similar discharges will be kept away from the river, captured and treated.

The city of Hollister operates the municipal sewer system and industrial wastewater treatment plant.

According to the California Water Board, the city has moved industrial canning waste from San Benito Foods to the plant through a combined collection system, which involves city staff manually operating an inline switching valve that directs the wastewater to the treatment facility during canning season. Outside of canning season, the same system discharges storm water to the San Benito River.

When the project is finished, storm water and canning waste spills will both go to the plant for treatment.

“We work hard with local entities to prevent these types of spills,” said Dr. Jean-Pierre Wolff, chair of the Central Coast Water Board, “and we take these violations and threats to the environment very seriously. This settlement demonstrates our and the city’s commitment to protecting and restoring our region’s waters.”